


Unconventional

by ParchmentandQuill8



Series: Unconventional [1]
Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-08
Updated: 2016-07-08
Packaged: 2018-07-22 06:24:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7423588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ParchmentandQuill8/pseuds/ParchmentandQuill8
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which a mission goes sideways and Sara brings a little girl from the 1930’s back onto the Waverider. What started out as just helping an abandoned child turned into something more as Leonard and Sara become more attached to the girl than they thought they would. Based on a post on Tumblr.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unconventional

**Author's Note:**

> I know, I know, I've been gone for ages, and I have no real explanation for that other than that I'm really good at procrastinating, but at least, this fic is a little bit longer than I'd expected. Hopefully that makes up for it. This is based on a post on Tumblr.

The team was in Norway, 1939, and the world was on the brink of one of its biggest wars yet.

They hadn't exactly planned to be in pre-World War Ⅱ Europe. In fact, Rip had informed the team that he'd be giving them a bit of downtime as he decided where he wanted their mission to go next. He'd been pouring through history books, trying to figure out where their newest adversary might be next when an article caught his eye.

It was on Vidkun Quisling, the Minister-President of Norway during the second World War. He supported Adolf Hitler's views, but also wanted peace among the European countries, so when Quisling was sought out by Hitler for permission to occupy Norway, he relied on the help of a domestic affairs advisor to make the decision for him. What caught Rip's eye was a blurred, grainy photograph that went with the article, picturing Quisling and his advisor, a tall man in a brown trench coat with an upturned collar. A quick check done by Gideon confirmed that the political advisor was indeed Rip Hunter. Once Rip realized what he had to do, he directed the Waverider towards Oslo, Norway, 1939.

"I'll be taking Sara and Mick with me," Rip said as the time ship landed. "and I request that the rest of you stay on board the Waverider. It is crucial that during this time, nothing changes because the consequences could be astronomical." None of the team was listening to him. They'd heard the same speech countless times. "Sara, Mick, you two may go prepare for the mission. Everyone else, you are free to do as you please until we return, as long as you stay-"

"-on the ship," Jax finished.

* * *

"You know," Leonard said, sitting on the edge of the bed as he watched Sara pinning back her hair. "the Vargas diamond was found in 1938."

"Lemme guess." Sara stuck one last pin into her hair and turned to face Leonard. "You want me to steal it."

"That would be correct."

"For you, crook, if I see it, I'll take it."

Sara crossed the room, her thirties-style heels clicking against the floor. She sat next to Leonard on the bed and rested her head on his shoulder.

Leonard and Sara's relationship had always been one that no one on the team could explain, yet, they were all in agreement that they — for some reason — worked, really really well. They'd been together since the team had finally defeated Vandal Savage. They hadn't exactly clued the rest of the team in on their relationship. They'd all had to find out when Ray had accidentally caught them in the act. Ray, discretion not being in his wheelhouse, had promptly told the whole team. All but Mick were taken aback by Ray's revelation. Mick was just surprised that nobody had noticed sooner. The way Sara and Leonard always sat next to each other during team meetings and in the mess hall, and the little smirks they exchanged made it very clear to Mick that there was something going on between his partner and the assassin, and that had been before they'd even gotten together. Apparently, though, the rest of the team wasn't as perceptive as he was, because it took an overly nosy Ray for them to find out about their teammates' being together.

Once Sara and Leonard realized they'd been caught, they decided to stop hiding their relationship. Sara started to lean against Leonard's side during team meetings and he would casually drape an arm around her waist, and they ignored the overt glances they received and the bemused looks the team shared. Soon, those glances and looks faded away as Sara and Leonard's relationship became a normalcy on the ship.

They'd been together for nearly two years when one day, they'd gone to Rip and demanded that he marry them.

_"You want me to what?" Rip had stuttered._

_"Marry us." Sara repeated, "You're a ship captain. Can't captains do that sort of thing?"_

_"Well, technically, yes, but I'm not sure that's advisable."_

_"Can it, Rip." Leonard had interrupted._

So Rip had done what they'd asked and when he was finished, they'd gone about their day as if nothing had happened. Their relationship may be unorthodox, but clearly it was working for them. Even Rip had to acknowledge that. They'd been together almost two and a half years and they had never faltered.

"So what are the chances we're going to jumpstart the second world war?" Sara commented.

"Seeing how well Rip's plans have gone in the past, I'd say pretty high." Leonard hesitated. "Do me a favor and try not to die, will you?"

"Death doesn't usually stick with me, remember?"

"I'd rather not take my chances."

"Don't worry, I'll be careful." Sara replied, lifting her head and standing up. "Besides, even if this mission only goes a little bit according to plan, I might not get to fight at all."

* * *

Sara was wrong. Almost nothing went according to plan. They did manage to tell Vidkun Quisling what they had to tell him. However, they also alerted the few Nazi party members already stationed in Norway of their unheeded presence, which was why Sara, Mick, and Rip were being pursued by Hitler's followers through a half-empty parking garage. Gunshots rang out as Sara's batons whirled through the air. She ducked behind an old-fashioned car and heard the sound of bullets hitting metal.

Mick's heat gun lit up the garage as it emitted a stream of flames. Sara heard the sounds of their adversaries' retreating footsteps and was about to step out from behind the car to follow when she heard a whimper from behind her. Sara slowly turned her head to see a little girl crouching by the tire of an adjacent car. She looked no older than three years old and was shaking like a leaf. Sara glanced around for anybody who could be her parents before bending down towards the girl. Her blonde hair was in desperate need of a wash, she thought. Her fair skin was smudged with dirt and her clothes were torn and stained.

She placed a hand on the girl's back and felt her flinch and then slowly lift her head. Peering out from behind a curtain of stringy hair was a set of shockingly blue eyes that glistened with tears threatening to spill over.

Sara stood and looked once more for any adult who could remotely be the girl's parents, but aside from them and a few cars, the garage was empty. Three more gunshots rang through the air, each one sounding closer than the last. Without hesitation, Sara scooped up the little girl and hurried towards the exit.

* * *

She soon arrived at the concealed jumpship. Once she was seated in one of the chairs, she adjusted the little girl in her lap so she was facing her.

Sara brushed the girl's hair away from her face.

"Oh," she said. It was a quiet sound, an exhaled exclamation of sorts. This kid, whoever she was, was ridiculously adorable. Her eyes were bluer than they'd seemed in the dimly lit parking garage. They were the same shade of ice blue as Leonard's, Sara realized, but the girl's darkened to a deep navy around the edges. She was looking into Sara's face and she felt her heart melt when the girl's eyes met her own. Her nose was tiny and slightly upturned. Her lips were the kind that were permanently stuck in a pout. Sara couldn't even believe how cute this kid was.

Sara forced herself to focus on the matter at hand. This little girl was completely alone in war-torn Norway. There had to be an explanation for it.

"Hey, can you tell me your name?" Sara asked quietly.

"Elsie," the girl whispered, her lips trembling.

"That's a pretty name." Sara replied, one hand instinctively rubbing nonsense patterns over Elsie's back "My name's Sara."

"Sara." Elsie repeated slowly.

"Yeah." Sara smiled. "Elsie, where are your mommy and daddy?"

She shook her head, "Gone."

"For how long?" Sara asked, noting the state of Elsie's clothes and hair.

"Long time."

"Was anyone taking care of you since your parents are gone?" Sara was pretty sure she already knew the answer, and wasn't surprised when Elsie shook her head. "Don't worry, okay? We're gonna help you."

Elsie nodded shakily.

* * *

A while later, Mick and Rip traipsed back to the jumpship. Rip's duster was smoking slightly and they were both glaring at each other.

"Idiot let them get away," Mick grunted, jabbing his thumb towards Rip.

"They may have been important to the timeli-" Rip froze as he turned to Sara and saw the little girl curled up on her lap. "Sara, who is that?"

"Elsie." she replied. "I found her in the parking garage and don't even think about making me bring her back because I'm not going to. Her parents are gone and she was all alone."

"Sara, the timeli-" Rip stopped when he saw Sara's threatening glare, her eyes burning angry holes into his. "Fine. We'll ask Gideon about her when we return to the Waverider, deal?"

"Fine."

Mick and Rip took their seats and Rip directed the jumpship into the air. Jolted by the quick motion, Elsie's tiny fingers gripped Sara's jacket.

"It's okay." Sara murmured, tightening her hold on the girl. She glanced up to see Mick watching her curiously.

* * *

Elsie fell asleep on the way back to the Waverider. Sara had realized this when she noticed that the weight of Elsie leaning against her chest had begun to feel a bit heavier. She had looked down to see that Elsie's eyes were closed and her lips had parted, her mouth drooping open slightly.

Sara knew, though, that as they neared the Waverider, she would have to wake her up. She began rubbing a hand up and down Elsie's back, remembering how she had woken napping toddlers during her babysitting years.

Slowly, Elsie began to stir, her eyes flickering open.

"Hey," Sara murmured, "It's time to wake up now."

Elsie nodded slowly.

There was a jolt as the jumpship docked on the Waverider and Rip stood to open the hatch. Sara lifted Elsie off of her lap and stood, taking the girl's tiny hand in her own and leading her off onto the timeship.

"Miss Lance, would you please bring your guest to the main deck?" Rip directed.

"No." Sara replied.

"What do you mean 'no'?"

"Look at her! She's hungry and dirty and tired. I'm not letting her stay like that any longer than she already has."

"Miss Lance, did you forget our agreement?"

"No, I just don't care." Sara replied, and with that, she turned away from Rip and began walking down the corridor. She went straight to the med bay, placing Elsie on one of the white beds when they arrived.

"Gideon, could you run a DNA test for Elsie?"

"Of course, Miss Lance." there was a long pause as the AI did her analysis. Soon, there was a beep, signifying that she had finished. "Would you like to hear the results?"

"Could you just tell me her name and how old she is?"

"Yes, her name is Elisabeth d'Aubert, however, her family often referred to her by the nickname Elsie. Miss d'Aubert is exactly three years and two months old. Would you like to know more?"

"Maybe later. Could you do a scan of Elsie's current health?"

"Of course," there was a pause as the AI did her analysis. "It appears that she is severely dehydrated and malnourished as a result of having been deprived of adequate food and water. She also has a case of pneumonia that is affecting both of her lungs. Would you like me to administer and antibiotic?"

"Yeah, do that." Sara nodded. "Is there anything else?"

"She also has sores and cuts on her hands and feet that are becoming infected. I have the technology to heal those and am starting the procedure now."

Sara watched as a blue light passed over Elsie and the cuts on her skin closed and faded away.

"Anything else?" Sara asked, when Gideon had finished.

"No, that is all."

"What should I do to help her get better?" Sara felt slightly annoyed with herself for needing the AI's help.

"I recommend at least three meals daily with an added nutritional supplement to help her return to a healthy weight and to aid her immune system. I also advise the intake of at least five and a half cups of fluids per day, specifically water for rehydration, and milk to restrengthen the bones. I also suggest a bath to prevent any more bacteria from entering her body. That along with a minimum of ten hours of sleep should help her return to an optimum state of health."

Sara nodded and lifted Elsie off of the medical bed, placing her gently on the floor. She took her hand and led her out of the med bay and back down the corridor. She stopped when she reached her bedroom, going into the en suite bathroom.

"We're gonna get you cleaned up, okay?" Sara said, her tone having made a complete one-eighty since her conversation with Rip. Elsie nodded. Sara turned the handle on the bathtub and water began cascading out of the faucet.

"Do you like bubble baths?" Sara asked. Elsie tipped her head in confusion. "Oh, right, you're from the nineteen-thirties. Well, I'm sure you'll like it."

Sara poured the bubble bath into the water and watched as it was churned into foam.

"While that fills up, we're gonna get you some new clothes."

Elsie nodded. Sara took her hand again and brought her to the fabrication room. The walk was not long, but there was still plenty of opportunity for them to run into other members of the team. Sara was pleasantly surprised, however, when this didn't happen on both the journey to the fabricator and back. It wasn't that she didn't want Elsie to meet the team, it was just that the team had a tendency to be a bit overwhelming, and Sara didn't think Elsie was ready for overwhelming yet.

They returned to Sara's room to see that the bathtub had been filled all the way, and a thick layer of pink foam was bubbling on the surface.

Sara helped Elsie out of her old clothes, and then lifted her into the bathtub.

Elsie giggled as a few bubbles tickled her nose. She reached out and squished a handful of foam, watching it seep between her fingers. Slowly, her mouth spread into a smile.

Sara set to cleaning Elsie while the little girl played with the bubbles. She scrubbed away all the dirt off of her skin and shampooed her hair, being careful to not get any soap in her eyes.

When she was finished, Sara drained the bathtub and wrapped Elsie in a fluffy towel.

"Do you feel all nice and clean now?" Sara asked as she towel-dried Elsie's hair. She nodded, a new sparkle in her eyes. "Do you wanna put your new clothes on?"

Elsie nodded again, and let Sara dress her in the pale purple cotton pajamas they'd picked out in the fabrication room. Sara had opted for pajamas rather than actual clothing as it was nearing seven-thirty now and Elsie would be going to sleep soon. Pajamas would also be far more comfortable than clothes and Sara wanted Elsie to be as comfortable as possible in this new, strange-looking place.

She grabbed a hairbrush from the edge of the sink and began running it through Elsie's hair. It was almost dry now and Sara could see that it was wavy and long — going far past her shoulders — and nearly the same shade of blonde as her own.

While she brushed her hair, being careful to not yank or pull too hard, she heard a rumbling sound coming from the direction of Elsie's stomach.

"When I'm done, we're going to go get you some food, okay?" Sara said, and Elsie nodded.

When Sara finished, she set the hair brush to the side and stood. Elsie reached for Sara's hand as they left the bedroom.

"What kind of food do you like?" she asked as they walked down the corridor. Elsie shrugged. "Have you ever had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?"

She shook her head. They soon arrived at the mess hall and a few minutes later, Sara had placed a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a tall glass of milk in front of Elsie.

She looked up at Sara skeptically before she lifted the sandwich to her lips and took the tiniest of bites. Slowly, her eyes widened in amazement and she looked down at the food as it were a thing of wonders.

"See," Sara laughed. "I told you they were good."

Sara was content to just sit and watch Elsie, but soon, she heard the sound of footsteps approaching the mess hall.

"You know," came a familiar drawling voice from the doorway. "When I asked you to get me a diamond, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind, but I'll roll with it."

Sara turned to see Leonard leaning up against the doorframe.

"Rip told you?"

"Well he's not exactly happy about what you did. He keeps checking to see if the timeline has exploded yet."

"And has it?"

"No." Leonard replied. He watched the little girl eating her peanut butter sandwich for a moment before he pushed himself off the wall and strode across the mess hall, sitting on a barstool next to her. "Cute kid."

"I can't even believe how cute she is." Sara replied, not taking her eyes off of her.

"What's her name?"

"Elsie."

Leonard nodded appreciatively.

"So why'd you do it?" he asked, after minute of silence.

"She was all alone." Sara replied, "I couldn't just leave her."

Elsie looked up, seeming to just now notice the presence of another person in the room.

"Elsie, this is my husband Leonard." Sara said.

"Hi." Elsie said. Leonard smiled slightly as her eyes met his before she turned back to her sandwich.

"Elsie has just discovered the joys of peanut butter." Sara explained, "Haven't you, Elsie?"

Elsie nodded and sent a gooey, sticky, peanut butter-filled smile in her direction.

"A joy you know all to well." Leonard smirked. He was referring to all the times he'd come across Sara eating peanut butter right out of the jar.

"It's not like you don't do the same thing." Sara shot back, her eyes glinting mischievously.

Leonard rolled his eyes. They watched Elsie finish her sandwich in silence. When she was done, Sara wiped the remains off of her face and hands.

"So Elsie," Leonard said, "What's the final verdict on peanut butter?"

"It's good!" Elsie giggled. Both Leonard and Sara smiled. Sara glanced at the clock above the door and saw that it was already past eight o'clock.

"Are you getting sleepy, Elsie?" she asked.

Elsie shrugged.

"How about we go back to our bedroom and watch a movie?" Sara suggested. "Do you like princesses?"

"Yeah," Elsie nodded.

"Well, you're gonna love Disney then."

* * *

Leonard and Sara brought Elsie back to their room. Once they were situated in bed with Elsie in between them, Sara asked Gideon to play Princess and the Frog.

"Miss Lance," Gideon interrupted, "the Disney film, Princess and the Frog was released in the year 2009, seventy years after Miss d'Aubert's present time. To show her the movie now could infringe on the timeline."

"Gideon, if you don't play this movie, I'll get Jax to reprogram you."

Sara's threat was an empty one, as it was unlikely that Gideon could be reprogramed, but it was effective nonetheless, because Princess and the Frog began to play on the wall opposite the bed.

Elsie was enthralled by the movie. She hung onto every word and even started picking up the lyrics for some of the songs, although what came out of her mouth was a bit more garbled and gibberish-sounding than the characters in the movie.

Sara and Leonard watched with smiles on their faces as Elsie bounced on her knees to the songs. As the minutes passed by, her movements became more subdued and her eyes grew heavier, her energy dwindling. Soon, she had fallen asleep against Sara's arm.

When Sara was sure Elsie wouldn't wake up, she shifted her over so she was stretched out underneath the blanket. Her head was on the pillow between Leonard and Sara, and her thumb was in her mouth.

Sara lowered the volume on the movie and turned her head towards her husband.

"Is it bad that I don't want her to go?" she murmured.

I don't know." Leonard met Sara's eyes, marking the first time he'd looked away from Elsie since the song  _Almost There_.

"I mean, she could have a family back in 1939 who's looking for her."

"Is that what you think?"

"Yeah." Sara nodded. "I can't imagine anyone in their right mind just letting her get away."

"But what if it's the opposite. She's from the nineteen-thirties; the world is at war. Maybe something happened and she has no family left to go home to. Then what? Where does she go?"

Sara was silent for a long time, working up the nerve to give Leonard her answer.

Finally, she said, "She could stay with us."

"Yeah?" he replied. He'd known that Sara would say something along those lines, he just didn't know why she was taking so long to get there.

"If that's okay with you?" Sara quickly added.

"Why wouldn't it be okay?"

"I dunno, I just thought that your experience with parents might be a bit of a turn off from being one yourself."

"I thought that at first, but not anymore, I don't think."

"What changed your mind?"

"You," Leonard replied. Sara smirked proudly back at him. "But don't get too excited. She could still have a family back in 1939."

Sara nodded and closed her eyes. Leonard followed suit and soon they were both asleep.

* * *

Leonard woke about four hours later, stirred by the feeling of someone tossing and turning beside him. He glanced over and could vaguely make out Elsie in the darkness. She was shaking violently and her face was contorted with pain.

Leonard immediately recognized it as a nightmare. He'd seen his fair share of them, both from Lisa when they were younger, and, more recently, from Sara. He'd even thought that it was Sara for a moment. On multiple occasions, Leonard had had to tear her away from nightmares of her time in the League of Assassins or the Lazarus Pit or, on rare occasions, the year she was dead.

This time, however, it wasn't Sara.

Leonard began rubbing a hand up and down Elsie's back, remembering how he'd woken Lisa when she had nightmares at this age.

Elsie's eyes sprang open and she sat straight up, her tiny chest heaving. Her eyes filled with tears and within moments, she'd begun to cry.

Without hesitation, Leonard got out of bed and scooped Elsie up with one arm. Her sobs were loud and rasping, coming from deep inside of her. It was a sound that Leonard could barely stand to hear. He glanced over at Sara, not wanting to wake her from a day that had been far more eventful than his own (the likelihood of Sara actually waking up was slim, though. When she was this deep asleep, trying to wake her would be like trying to wake a wall; it just wouldn't happen).

Leonard carried Elsie into the hallway, closing the bedroom door behind them. Elsie's legs locked around his middle and she buried her face in his neck. He could feel her tears, hot against his skin.

Leonard held Elsie close, rocking side to side in slow, twisting motions.

"It's okay." he whispered into her hair. "It was only a dream. You're safe now."

Leonard began to walk around the halls of the Waverider, knowing that the motion would help calm Elsie. He was careful to avoid the other bedrooms. Sara may be a heavy sleeper, but the sound of Elsie's sobs might wake other members of the team.

As Elsie's cries petered out, Leonard found himself in front of the fabrication room, having just remembered another thing he'd done to help Lisa when she'd had nightmares.

Leonard went into the room and slid the door closed behind him.

The walls of the fabrication room were made of panels that glowed a soft shade of white. The fabricator hummed softly in one corner and in another was a board covered in colorful fabric swatches. The vast contrast to the dark steel and iron structure of the rest of the timeship made this room much more calming than anywhere else on the Waverider.

He was right. After only a few minutes, Elsie's breathing had evened out and was no longer as shaky. Her heavy flow of tears had subsided into just a trickle.

"You know," Leonard said softly, "when my younger sister was your age, she had a lot of nightmares too. You know what always helped her?" Elsie didn't say anything, but looked up at him with wide eyes, so Leonard continued, "Stuffed animals."  
Leonard stood in front of the fabricator and began to fashion a stuffed animal for Elsie. He tried to put her down so he'd have the use of both of his hands, but she wasn't having any of it, so he shifted her to the side, balancing her on his hip so he could at least use one.

"What's your favorite animal?" he asked.

"Elephant," Elsie whispered.

"What's your favorite color?" he asked as he reached the step in the process where he'd have to pick a color.

"Light blue." Elsie whispered.

"Me too." Leonard whispered back, and he could swear that Elsie smiled. She wiped the tears off of her face with the back of her hand.

Slowly, a light blue fuzzy stuffed elephant appeared in front of them. Leonard held out the toy and Elsie tentatively reached out to touch it. Her whole face lit up.

"It's soft!" Elsie giggled, running her hand across the elephant's back.

"I know," Leonard chuckled. He bent down to set Elsie on the floor, handing her the stuffed animal. Elsie gripped its ears with her tiny fists, holding it close to her chest. Leonard then crouched down in front of her.

"Do you want to talk about your dream?" he asked cautiously. Elsie didn't reply, so Leonard continued. "Was it about where Sara brought you from?"

Slowly, she nodded.

"Sara told me she found you all alone, without any parents. Was your dream about your mom and dad?"

Elsie nodded, glancing down at her feet.

"Do you want to talk about them?" Leonard asked, already knowing that her answer would be a no. He wasn't surprised when she shook her head. "That's okay. How about we go back to bed."

Leonard picked Elsie up, stuffed elephant and all, and left the fabrication room.

"You know," he said as he walked back down the corridors of the Waverider. "I didn't have a very good dad when I was growing up, and sometimes, I get bad dreams about him too."

"But you're a grownup." Elsie said, confused. "Grownups don't get bad dreams."

"Yes they do." Leonard nodded. "I do, and so does Sara. You just have to remember that it's only a dream." Elsie nodded, "And if you ever have another one, you can come to me or Sara, okay? We want to keep you safe."

By now, they'd reached the bedroom. Inside, Leonard saw that Sara was still sleeping soundly. He lifted Elsie and her new elephant onto the bed and then climbed in himself.

Elsie curled up against his side and closed her eyes. Leonard stretched his arm around her, his fingertips brushing Sara's shoulder.

His eyes kept drooping closed, but he fought to stay awake until Elsie's breaths finally evened out.

* * *

Sara woke up unusually early the next morning. She looked over and saw Elsie on Leonard's chest. One of his hands was pressed firmly on her back, preventing her from rolling off of him. Both were still asleep. Sara smiled fondly at them, a hand unconsciously going out to rest on Elsie's shoulder, her thumb rubbing back and forth.

"Gideon," she said after a moment, keeping her voice low as to not wake up the two beside her, "could you do another scan of Elsie's health?"

"Of course, Miss Lance," Gideon said, "It appears that, with your and Mr. Snart's aid, she is on track to optimal health. I recommend continuing to give her fluids and nutritional supplements with each meal. As for the pneumonia, the antibiotics given to her are helping her body fight off the infection."

"Good." Sara replied. She felt very tempted to get Gideon to do some research on Elsie. It was bothering her that she didn't know who she was or what had happened to her, but something made her stop. She suspected it had something to do with how goddamned happy she'd felt when she'd woken up to see Elsie. She didn't want to spend the little time she might have left with Elsie lamenting about having to return her to a family in her present time - which, if it was the case, she'd absolutely do; she was not going to tear a family apart. But, she'd feel a bit better if she didn't know if she'd have to bring Elsie back to 1939 until the last minute.

At that thought, Sara felt rather selfish. She'd found Elsie hungry, sick, and alone. She should be focusing on taking care of her, yet here she was, wallowing in self-pity. That's not who she was. She was not the type of person to throw a pity party over something like this. That was something Rip would do, Sara thought, and that realization made her roll her eyes in disgust.

Sara had been so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed Elsie's eyes blinking open. She didn't realize she was awake at all until Elsie sat up, pushing herself off of Leonard's chest.

"Good morning," Sara smiled softly. "Did you have a good sleep?"

Elsie nodded sleepily, rubbing her eyes with her tiny fists.

"Hey, do you want to go get some breakfast?" Sara asked.

"Okay." Elsie agreed.

"I'm just gonna go get dressed, okay? I'll be back in a minute." Sara climbed over Leonard's legs and out of the bed. She grabbed a pair of black jeans and a grey t-shirt from the dresser and a pair of combat boots from the floor and crossed the room to the bathroom.

When she was finished getting dressed, she reentered her bedroom to see Elsie waiting patiently where she'd left her.

"Ready?" Sara asked, helping her out of the bed. Sara went to take her hand, but Elsie stretched her arms upwards towards Sara, so she picked her up instead. As Sara walked back down the hallway towards the mess hall, Elsie rested her head on Sara's shoulder, absentmindedly twirling her fingers in Sara's hair.

There was nobody in the mess hall yet when they arrived, which didn't surprise Sara. Most of the rest of the team were morning people, but it was early even for them, the clock above the door reading a few minutes past six (time, as Rip had stated over and over, was a relative thing. It didn't really exist on a timeship, but Kendra, hoping for some semblance of normalcy, had gotten Rip to install several clocks set to the same time as Central and Star City around the ship).

"How about we make pancakes?" Sara suggested, setting Elsie down on the counter. She nodded enthusiastically and they set to making pancake batter. Sara carefully measured out each ingredient and let Elsie pour it into a metal mixing bowl. Soon, several pancakes were sizzling on the frying pan.

Just as Sara was placing a plate of syrup-covered pancakes and a glass of orange juice in front of Elsie, Leonard entered the mess hall.

"Morning," he said, planting a kiss on top of Sara's head and reaching over to smooth a hand over Elsie's hair. At his touch, Elsie looked up and gave him a syrupy smile.

"You're up late." Sara commented.

"You would be too if you were up in the middle of the night."

"Why? What happened?"

"This one," Leonard tipped his head towards Elsie, "had a nightmare."

Sara cringed, glancing at Elsie. "I was wondering where the elephant came from. Was it bad?"

Leonard nodded grimly, "She seems okay now though."

They both looked over and saw that Elsie was wearing more of her pancakes than she had eaten, her face and shirt a sticky mess. Leonard chuckled and Sara smiled somewhat sadly at her.

"Did she tell you what her dream was about?" Sara asked.

"Sort of. She said it was about her parents but I couldn't get any specifics out of her."

"Her parents?" Sara repeated. "That can't be a good sign."

Leonard shook his head. They both decided to put the subject to rest. They'd be finding out about Elsie's family later, whoever they ended up being. There was no sense in wasting time trying to figure it out now. They sat on either side of Elsie at the counter, watching with smiles on their faces as she messily ate her pancakes. Just as she swallowed the last bites, three members of the team traipsed into the mess hall. Jax and Kendra were both still pajama-clad with messy hair and heavy eyes. Ray, on the other hand, was already dressed, looking well-rested and ready for the day.

"Aw!" Kendra cooed when she saw Elsie. "Is this her? Oh my goodness she's so cute! What's her name?"

"Elsie," Sara answered, "Elsie, this is Kendra, Jax, and Ray."

"What a pretty name! How old are you, Elsie?"

"Three." Elsie whispered. Leonard glanced nervously down at her, hearing a new trepidation rising in her voice.

"Wow, three years old?" Ray said, enthusiastically blundering towards Elsie.

"Take a chill-pill, dude," Jax advised him, "You're freaking her out."

Ray took a few steps back and Leonard gave Jax an appreciative nod **.** He still felt, though, that he needed to get Elsie away from all these unfamiliar people. He turned to Sara, who was wiping the syrup off of Elsie's hands and face with a damp washcloth. Judging by her concerned expression, she was feeling the same way he was.

"Why don't you go get her into some new clothes?" he suggested. "I'll let Rip know you're on your way."

Sara nodded and lifted Elsie off of her stool, mouthing the words "Thank you," to Leonard as they left. She was grateful not only for the excuse to leave, but also because Leonard was condemning himself to a torrent of questions about Elsie from their team, questions he probably would have otherwise ignored.

"You okay?" Sara asked, searching Elsie's face. She nodded slowly, "They're kinda loud sometimes. That can be a little scary."

Elsie nodded again as they reached the fabrication room. There, Sara dressed her in a pale peach tulle skirt and a white blouse, discarding the now pancake-covered pajamas.

Before they left for the main deck, Sara crouched down to Elsie's level.

"I'm gonna bring you to a new part of the ship, okay?" she began and Elsie nodded, "There's gonna be a lot of people there — even more than the mess hall. It might be scary, but I'll be right there, and so will Leonard."

Elsie nodded again and Sara stood, taking her hand and leading her to the main deck.

The rest of the team was there, and, as Sara had predicted, they were chattering loudly. There was a lull in the noise as they realized who had entered the room. Sara saw Kendra melt a second time as her eyes fell on Elsie, and those who hadn't seen her yet couldn't seem to take their eyes off of her either.

Elsie nervously tugged on the hem of Sara's t-shirt. Sara lifted Elsie up and balanced her on her hip. Leonard crossed the room to stand beside the two.

"Ah, Miss Lance," Rip strode towards them, "Thank you for finally gracing us with your presence."

"Let's just get on with it, Hunter." Sara replied.

"Gladly. Gideon, could you please identify our little guest?"

"Of course, Captain." the AI chirped. There was a moment of silence while Gideon did her analysis. Sara could feel the rest of the team's eyes on her, all of them mimicking the curious expression Mick had shown on the jumpship the day before.

"As I've already told Miss Lance, her name is Elisabeth - or Elsie - d'Aubert. The d'Aubert family were Norwegian nobility."

"Were?" Sara repeated. "Why not now?"

"With the impending threat of the war, most Norwegian royalty, prominent government figures, and nobility fled the country." Rip explained. "It's possible that something could have happened to her family during that time. Gideon?"

"That is correct, captain. According to several reports and obituaries from this time, the d'Aubert family, including their daughter Elisabeth, were just leaving their home in Oslo, Norway, en route to London, England, when they were attacked by members of the Nazi party, who suspected them of supporting the Allied nations." Sara felt Elsie tensing up in her arms. She shot a warning look to Leonard, who was suddenly realizing why Elsie hadn't wanted to talk about her parents, "Elisabeth was able to escape, but unfortunately, the rest of her family, including her mother, father, and two older brothers were killed by-"

"Thanks, Gideon." Sara silenced the AI. Through Gideon's recapitulation of the demise of Elsie's family, Elsie's eyes had been welling with tears. Now, she buried her face in Sara's neck in an attempt to hide the choking sobs that were ringing across the now silent team. Sara rubbed a hand up and down her back, murmuring comforting words into her hair.

Leonard glared angrily at Rip, a fire in his eyes that was usually only reserved for his adversaries making the captain take a step back.

"Look, I'm sorry," Rip said. Gideon was so lifelike that he often forgot that she was a robot. She didn't feel emotions and she didn't have the tact or empathy that would have prevented an actual person from pursuing the touchy subject. "but you need to bring Elisabeth back to 1939."

"No." Sara replied immediately, tightening her hold on Elsie.

"What do you mean 'no'?" Rip exclaimed. "Haven't I told you time and time again how detrimental it could be to remove a person from the timeline."

Sara's eyes narrowed. Leonard moved to take Elsie from her, knowing that whatever she was going to do to Rip wasn't going to be pretty. Sara took several steps forward so her face was very close to Rip's. As she began to argue threateningly, Elsie lifted her head, tears streaming down her face.

"I don't wanna go back," she whispered between ragged gasps for air.

"You don't have to worry about that." Leonard replied. He turned to where Rip and Sara were arguing.

"Gideon," he interrupted, "is the universe going to explode if we take Elsie from the timeline."

His question silenced both Sara and Rip.

"No, Mr. Snart." Gideon replied. "According to my analysis, had she been left in the timeline, she would have died within the week due to malnourishment and illness."

Sara turned to Rip with her eyebrows raised. The words  _I told you so_ were written all over her face.

"Well of course I'm not going to condemn a little girl to death," Rip rolled his eyes as if he hadn't just proposed exactly that. "Gideon, what if we bring her to an orphanage in 1939?"

"I predict a similar outcome, captain. However, her death would be caused by bombings during the German invasion in May, 1940."

"What if-"

"Shut up, Rip." Leonard interrupted.

"Are you suggesting that, what, she stays on the ship and you're just going to take care of her?"

"Yes." Leonard immediately replied. Rip groaned and threw his hands up in defeat.

"How'd you liked that, Elsie?" Sara asked. "Do you want Leonard and I to take care of you now?"

Elsie nodded bashfully. Leonard pressed a kiss to the top of her head and wiped the tears off of Elsie's cheeks with his thumb.

She stretched out her arms towards Sara and Leonard handed her over. Elsie locked her legs around Sara's waist and buried her face in her hair. Sara wrapped her arms around Elsie, rocking back and forth.

"This is so awesome!" Ray exclaimed. "It'll be so cool to have a little kid on board to play with."

"Hey, she's not your kid." Sara shot back warningly.

"May I just say," Martin said, "what a wonderful thing it is that you two are doing, rescuing a child, I mean. Absolutely marvelous. I have the utmost respect for you both."

"I have to agree with Grey, for once." Jax added. "I think it's cool what you guys are doing. Do you think maybe, when she's older, I could teach her how to play football?"

"Yeah." Sara smiled, "I think she'd like that."

They were interrupted by Rip clearing his throat loudly.

"I take it there's nothing I can do to stop this from happening?"

"Nope." Sara replied.

"Well, if and when you realize this is a mistake, I'll be saying I told you so."

He turned on his heels and left the main deck, leaving the rest of his team to fawn over their newest member.

* * *

As it turns out, Rip never had to say 'I told you so'. Several months passed by and Elsie had fully settled in to living on the Waverider. She had her own room now, decorated with shades of light blue and peach. Her room was right next to Sara and Leonard's, so they wouldn't be too far away when she had the occasional nightmare.

The first time she called Leonard and Sara her parents was during one such instance. It had been an accident, really.

That night, Sara and Leonard both half-woke as their door open. They both now understood what they'd been told in the past about parents never getting any sleep. Sara had always thought that would never apply to her because she slept so deeply, but in a matter of only a few months, she'd been proven wrong. She and Leonard were always on high-alert for the mechanical sound of their bedroom door sliding open. They both woke up fully when Elsie landed on Leonard's chest, her stuffed elephant in her hand. He opened his eyes to see a tangle of blonde curls obscuring his vision. He pushed back Elsie's hair to see tears streaming down her face. Sara groggily rolled over and ran her hand up and down Elsie's back.

"Did you have a bad dream, Elsie-bear?" Sara asked. Elsie nodded. "Do you wanna tell us about it?"

"There was a monster," she began, her words muffled through Leonard's shirt. "and it lived under my bed and it came and tried to take me away and eat me and I tried to run but then my feet got stuck together and it was 'bout to eat me when I woke up, and Daddy it was so scary!"

Sara raised her eyebrows, but Leonard seemed unfazed by what Elsie had called him.

"Do you want me to go check your room for monsters?" he asked, one arm wrapped around her shoulders, his other palm resting on her cheek. Elsie nodded, so he handed her off to Sara, "I'll go do that then. You stay here with Mommy."

He got out of bed and headed for the door, smirking at Sara as he left.

"You okay, bear?" Sara asked, enveloping Elsie in her arms. She nodded, tucking her head under Sara's chin. "Bad dreams are scary, but just remember that it's not real. Everything will be all better when you wake up."

"I know." Elsie nestled closer to Sara.

After a few moments, Leonard returned, climbing back into the bed.

"There weren't any monsters this time, Els, but why don't you stay in here tonight, just to be safe."

Elsie rolled over on top of his chest and planted a wet, sloppy kiss on his cheek.

"I love you, Daddy." she said. The look of absolute adoration on Elsie's face made Sara's heart melt. "And you too, Mommy."

"I love you so much." Sara kissed the top of Elsie's head, running her fingers through her hair.

"I love you, Elsie." Leonard said. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't afraid when Sara had talked about raising Elsie that first day she'd been on the Waverider, but now, nearly four months later, he was looking at a kid he now considered his own, and there was so much love coursing through him that he didn't regret a thing.

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope you enjoyed this! If you want to see the inspiration for Elsie, the post for this fic on my Tumblr (url: captaincanarygotmelike.tumblr.com) has a photo of her, and, just a warning, she's really frickin' cute.


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